a rolls royce shadow gave me a lift. the driver, a wonderfully generous man, brought me to his parents' house in connecticut for a christmas eve dinner then drove me all the way to new hampshire. my final destination? it was my personal christmas movie. wow. please keep the conversation going. facebook.com/carol cnn. thank you for spending part of your christmas day with me. i hope you have a wonderful christmas. cnn newsroom continues right now with suzanne malveaux. hello everyone. i'm suzanne malveaux. thanks for joining us on this christmas day. merry christmas. we are keeping you updated on the latest news, also bringing christmas celebrations from around the world. a lot of people are getting something that was not on the christmas wish list. we are talking about the stormy weather. this is a powerful system that could dump 4 to 6 inches of snow and sleet on parts of southern great plains, the ozarks as well. the south is under the threat of severe weather and possible tornadoes. the storm already causing problems on the roads. the oklahoma highway patrol says

westbound interstate 40 was temporarily shut down for two miles in a suburb of oklahoma city this morning. they say freezing rain is probably to blame for a chain reaction crash involving 20 vehicles. you see it there. including three big rigs. alexandra steele is the storm. >> take a look at this. severe weather is just beginning to ramp up today. we're looking at a whole day with severe weather. tornado watches you can see. look at this. i-10 right along the gulf coast, houston to new orleans. and this is just really the beginning of it. we're looking at incredibly severe weather. tornado watches and tornado warnings. tornado warnings meaning these storms have produced rotation and have been detected. you can see right there. so right now it's eastern texas moving into louisiana. kind of to give you a perspective, south of i-20 here is tyler, texas. here's shreveport, louisiana. all of these moving northeast and this is just the beginning

of really what could be an inundation of severe weather today and really a rash of tornadoes which is really quite rare for christmas day. so here is a look from houston to new orleans the beginning of the day from now through kind of early afternoon and as we head toward afternoon and into evening, atlanta, birmingham, so dangerous tornadoes, winds 60 to 80 miles per hour, straight line winds could be a factor as well. as well as damaging hail. so you kind of get the perspective and the gravity of this. that is the severe weather side. on the back side in oklahoma city we're talking snow. although you've seen the pictures along i-40 of the dangers on the road. oklahoma city had the potential for 5 to 8 inches of snow but what's happened is we're seeing a lot of ice develop so that is cutting down on the snowfall accumulations and totals for oklahoma city. maybe now 2 to 4 but look what happens. north of little rock, 2 to 6 potentially. and then around paducah through kentucky 6 to 12 potentially with blizzard warnings and then

as we head from today into tonight the snow moves all the way in toward ohio and then the potential, suzanne, in western new york and upstate new york for 12 plus inches of snow. >> right. >> so this is just the beginning of really a tough few days. >> this is the day to stay inside, wrap yourself in a blanket. open your gifts and just hunker down. >> yes. >> okay. thank you. appreciate it. we'll get back with you later in the hour as well. it wouldn't be christmas in britain without a broadcast greeting from the royal family. this year's remarks from queen elizabeth aired just this last hour while the message itself does not change the technology does. would you believe 3-d? yep. 80 years after the queen's grandfather began the tradition with a crackly address over wireless elizabeth ii wished the brits a happy christmas in 3-d. in his christmas day message to the city and the world pope benedict xvi appealed for piece in countries at war with

themselves. he singled out mali, nigeria, and especially syria. >> translator: yes, may peace be brought for the people of syria, deeply wounded and divided by a conflict which does not spare even the defenseless and reaps innocent victims. once again, i appeal for an end to the bloodshed. easier access for the relief of refugees and the displaced and dialogue in the pursuit of a political solution to the conflict. >> last night as always the pope celebrated christmas eve mass in st. peter's basilica. he reminded christians everywhere to leave room for god in their busy lives. you can't get closer to christmas than church of the nativity in bethlehem. ♪ >> vast crowds turned out for midnight mass near the spot

considered jesus' actual birth place. tourism officials estimated 20% jump over the last year in foreign pilgrims in part because of the church's recent designation as a u.n. world heritage site. the obama family celebrated the president's birth place in hawaii and, yes, christmas brings us one day closer to possibly the fiscal cliff, the huge tax increases, spending cuts that could take effect in one week or so. brianna keeler is watching there in hawaii, joining us with the update. first of all, how is the president, how is the first family spending the holiday? >> presumably right now they are sleeping in, suzanne, because it is still very early here as you know. >> what time is it? >> we are expecting of course they'll have a christmas. let's see. 6:00 in the morning bright and early. we've been at it for a few hours. we expect them to have a nice christmas meal at the house they're renting.

the white house chef is here. maybe we'll get details on what they are going to eat. there is nothing on the president's public schedule. he is frequently gone and visiting with troops in the past so we wouldn't be surprised if he did that again today. i will tell you that bo the dog is actually along for the ride here in hawaii and the white house released a video where bo just really kind of steals the show. let's look at a little of that. this is from the first lady going to the national children's medical center and reading "it was the night before christmas." she got a little help from the first dog. >> good afternoon everyone. i'm the president and ceo of children's national. >> this is exactly what he does at home. he tries to beat malia and sasha to my lap. this is one of my favorite things to do during the holidays is coming to the children's hospital to see all of you. and i want to thank --

>> wow. >> this is actually something, suzanne, that first ladies have done since the 1950s. bess truman was the first to do it. yeah. she said she enjoyed coming to the hospital. it's a long standing tradition. >> you know, it's funny because the first time i saw bo at the white house he was really small. that dog is huge now. i can't believe he is that big. and is the president going to get any work done? tell us a little bit about the fiscal cliff here. we know the senate is going to come back on thursday. do we expect the presidt to come back to washington and deal with trying to avoid these tax increases and the spending cuts? >> it really does sound like he'll be coming back, suzanne. it is not official. the white house hasn't put out a schedule update. it seems to be more a matter of when he is coming back rather than if. the senate will reconvene thursday. all eyes there as senate majority leader harry reid tries to cobble together something that can get some republican support. we'll be waiting to see exactly when president obama is coming back but we understand that the

senate even though it reconvenes on thursday may not, senate democrats may not roll out a bill until closer to the new year. also get some republican support and put pressure on the house to take it up. >> we'll be following that very closely. have a wonderful christmas and of course we'll talk with you a little bit later. if there are any developments on the fiscal cliff. stay with cnn for any movement on that standoff day or night. we're the woolstons in turkey. i'm joel. >> katy, sidney, brittany. >> we'd like to wish merry christmas to our family in idaho. merry christmas! >> merry christmas! >> happy holidays! t an amateur from a mile away... while going shoeless and metal-free in seconds. and you...rent from national. because only national lets you choose any car in the aisle...and go.

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christmas also accompanied by sadness and grief, in newtown, connecticut people are still mourning for the 20 children and six adults who were killed when a gunman burst into their school and opened fire. this round-the-clock vigil is under way in remembrance of the shooting victims. a candle was lit in honor of each of them. volunteers are asked to take half hour shifts to keep the candles burning. the vigil started at midnight and will continue until 11:59 tonight. the tragedy in newtown was followed by an outpouring of support from around the world and from nearby communities. today the entire newtown police department is actually getting christmas day off thanks to the generosity of their fellow officers. police from neighboring towns volunteered to fill in so that newtown officers could spend

christmas with their families. joining us on the phone newtown police chief michael kehoe. he has been through quite a lot and your officers have been through quite a lot as well as the community. give us a sense of what this means for them to simply be with their own loved ones, their own kids in this time of recovery and grief. >> you are absolutely correct. christmas is a time of giving and at this time we were gifted with our law enforcement partners volunteering their time to have our officers spend time with their families. i know that on behalf of all of the men and women of the newtown police department we are eter l eternally grateful for their support and contributions today. >> you know, nobody could even imagine what the first responders and the officers went through, what they saw inside of that school. how are they coping today? what are you doing to help them in the community? >> besides giving them a day

off, encouraging them to be with their families and go to religious services and to certainly reach out to their friends and neighbors so they feel a sense of love and hope. >> is there a sense of how this community, how your community and your own family can recover if that is possible to how you move forward? well, we certainly are going to move forward, suzanne. we have several memorials in our community. many are luminaries. our plan for the future is to gather all those gifts and those memorials and to eventually use them in some way to make this very large memorial in our community. we'll have our community be a part of that so we do it correctly and appropriately. >> you mentioned on your web page, you wrote a message expressing sympathy to the victims' families and praising the first responders, the teachers, the entire community.

i want to read this for our viewers. you say the newtown police department will work with our community partners to restore a sense of security and normalcy to newtown. our law enforcement professionals are committed to helping the community through this difficult period. what do you think is the most important thing right now that the community needs to start, to begin this healing process? >> they should be assured the town of newtown is a safe place to live. with all of the law enforcement people we've had in the community over the last ten days or so you can certainly see the presence of those officers being felt by our community. so as we move forward and heal, that presence will still be felt and the town of newtown is very grateful that we have so much support from our law enforcement partners. >> and, chief, i understand that you, too, have a message you

wanted to deliver to those who have reached out to you as well. >> yes. we cannot say thank you enough for the as you said the worldwide support we have received through the e-mails, the food, the cards, the gifts. it's been overwhelming and over the top and it will take us weeks to get back to everyone who has been showing their support and gifts to us. >> chief, michael kehoe, we thank you as well. it has been a blessing. your community, what you have taught us through this tragedy, empathy to hold our loved ones tighter and as the president said really to get a sense of what is really important in this world. thank you. that has been a blessing for us as well. we appreciate your time. >> thank you. >> hi. i'm captain amanda petkowski at air base, turkey and i want to take a second to say merry

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we've been covering the blood shed in syria and increasingly civilians now are the targets of military attacks. the death toll from the air raids on two bakeries has actually climbed to more than 115 people. even more startling six rebel fighters died after reportedly inhaling an odorless white gas that was released from canister bombs. cnn has not been able to independently confirm that story. but a doctor in the rebel stronghold of homs says he

treated 30 people, with symptoms ranging from breathing problems, headaches, hallucinations to more serious conditions including paralysis, seizures, and blindness. i'm joined by my guest from lebanon to talk more about this. i understand there is a doctor who managed to treat some of these patients, a couple things, first of all, how did that happen? how did he treat them? and could there be some remedy to help identify what this gas was? >> this doctor in homs province said he treated 30 of the more than 60 people affected by this gas. he said that of those that he treated, they responded well to atrapene which he says is sometimes used to treat people who suffered from sarin gas. he said it is unclear at this stage what the substance may have been. of those affected people suffered symptoms like

paralysis, seizures, muscle spasms, in some cases blindness. but he also told us others who were exposed to the gas who were further away from the source suffered difficulty breathing, disorientation, hallucination, nervousness, and a lack of limb control. that can be similar to exposure to excessive amounts of tear gas. very important to point out at this stage even the doctor we spoke with, unsure about what exactly this substance was these people were exposed to. >> want to be very careful you don't over state that. tell us what has taken place now. they have targeted civilians before but now you've got these bombings, these bakeries. these are just people who are lining up to get bread essentially. are we looking at a shift if you will in the fighting that is taking place on the ground where now civilians become widespread targets? >> suzanne, as horrific as all this news is about the bombing targeting bakeries according to

opposition actors we must remember starting in late august we heard from human rights watch. they documented at least ten separate cases in aleppo province of bakeries there just these last several months coming under attack. the activists we speak with say they believe that when crowds gather in bread lines outside of these bakeries they are seen as a threat by the syrian military. that is one of the reasons they believe they come under attack. the syrian government denies they attack civilians lined up for bread. more and more we hear about these incidents. the past two days we are told first in hama province hundreds of people were lined up. this was the first day on sunday the bakery had been opened, that the town had been liberated a few days before that. there were rebels in there and that's where it was targeted. the syrian government denies having done so. yesterday the very next day in homs province we hear of another bakery under attack. women and children were killed in that attack. terrible news. all playing out against the back drop of more diplomacy. people trying to come to some

sort of solution there. it hasn't happen. there is fear more of these attacks will happen in the days and months to come. >> i am assuming the government does have some ability to be able to tell whether or not these are rebel groups or if these are women and children who are simply lined up to get bread. that sounds like an explanation that people really are not buying there. is that accurate, fair to say? >> absolutely. very different narratives we hear from different groups on the ground. the syrian government maintains that these attacks are the works of terrorists. this is how they fall, opposition fighters. the term they use, they call them terrorists. the opposition actors, rebel sir free army, say no this is the government targeting civilians in areas where they know they are lined up. the syrian government denies it but is coming under more condemnation from international groups for these actions. >> thank you. all you have to do is take a look at this amateur video from one of these bombings at the bakery that shows folks there. they are screaming.

there was one man who looks into the camera and simply yells, where are you, world? i mean, there are people here who are calling attention to what is taking place on the ground and really suffering and want the rest of the world to do something. thank you very much. we appreciate your reporting. we'll be following the story as we always do. later today officials are expected to announce the official result on the vote of a new constitution. supporters of president morsi and the muslim brotherhood, they say 64% of voters backed this. so the opponents, however, clap the referendum was rigged. they also say that the document fails to protect the rights of women and minorities. now, this is creating a new constitution. it really is a key step in egypt's transition to democracy. it is also setting the stage for a new parliament to be formed. in india a policeman has died after being injured during violent protests over the weekend. more than 75 officers were hurt

when they fought demonstrators in new delhi. there was a gang rape earlier this month of a woman on a public bus. the woman, a 23-year-old medical student is still in the hospital. doctors say her condition is now worse. she is being treated for internal bleeding and is getting high doses of antibiotics. across the east coast of malaysia more than 6,000 people have been evacuated. you can see the pictures there in the wake of storms that caused severe flooding. authorities warn that two major rivers are at dangerous levels. heavy rain is expected to continue for several more days. oh, it's the old man. hold on, i gotta send something out. you can have two apps open at the same time? how'd you do that? it's the galaxy note 10.1 man, it just does it. how do you think they made it? magic. do more with the samsung galaxy note 10.1. available at best buy and st buy mobile stores.

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houston of course a tragedy. the struggle to avoid the fiscal cliff. and a luxury ship, cruise ship on its side in the water. well, now think about the advances made in science. some of them dazzle the eye. john zarrella counts down the top ten. >> reporter: at number ten a revolutionary camera called litro. >> it is such a powerful technology breakthrough that this will forever change how we all take inexperienced pictures. >> reporter: the camera captures the entire light field allowing the picture's focus and perspective to be changed after it's been taken. number nine, nasa's dawn spacecraft sent back staggering data about an asteroid 325 miles in diameter called vesta. it appears vesta went through some stages of planetary evolution. it's one of a kind in the solar system. >> what's clear to us is that vesta appears to be the only intact proto planet that's left.

>> reporter: number eight. you may have heard the term god particle. scientists call it higsbosin. the european nuclear research corporation claims to have found it. why is it a big deal? think big bang theory. >> and this particle we think was in fact a particle like this was the fuse that set off the explosion which created the universe. >> reporter: researchers found it after analyzing data from proton collisions generated by a particle accelerator. at 7, a leap of faith. felix baumgartner's record breaking jump. baumgartner broke the freefall record and the sound barrier jumping from 128,000 feet in a revolutionary space suit. >> i said, i know the whole world is watching now and i wish the world could see what i see. >> six, young children dying at an alarming rate in cambodia and with alarming speed. it was a medical mystery.

it was unusually aggressive. our dr. sanjay gupta was there when the mystery was solved. >> they found those organisms in conjunction with these kids getting steroids probably led to such an aggressive course. >> reporter: number five, spacex became the first commercial company to rendezvous and dock a spacecraft with the international space station. it marked a new beginning. private companies taking over for nasa sending cargo and eventually humans to the station. number four, scientists found the great barrier reef, the largest in the world, is in trouble. >> half of the coral on the great barrier reef has disappeared over the last 27 years. that is a momentous change. >> reporter: scientists attribute much of the loss to storm damage. at number three we go to the pacific and the deepest part of any ocean in the world with famous film director and explorer james cameron. first test dives. >> about five major systems failures that prevented me from

going on. >> reporter: finally in a submersible called deep sea challenger cameron went down 35,000 feet. number two, melting ice. scientists using satellite and aircraft data have found the greenland and antarctic ice sheets are losing three times as much ice as 20 years ago. giant rifts appeared in places like antarctic's pine island glacier. combined antarctica and greenland have contributed to 1/5 of all sea level rise over the past 20 years. and our number one is called seven minutes of terror. the rover "curiosity" survived a harrowing ride through the martian atmosphere in a landing method never before attempted prompting an outpouring of emotion from the nasa team. "curiosity" is now roaming the landing site hunting for signatures of past life -- water, carbon, methane. if it finds any "curiosity" might well be our number one again next year.

john zarrella, cnn, miami. >> don't miss our top ten of 2012 special as cnn revisits the stories that captured the country's attention. my colleague don lemon shares with you the biggest stories of the year in crime, politics, money, and even the most scandalous stories. top ten of 2012 tonight at 7:00 eastern. hi. my name is specialist ashley eady from kuwait. shout out to my brother pfc christopher mallard stationed in alaska. i love you. merry christmas. and i miss you. initiated. neural speeds increasing to 4g lte. brain upgrading to a quad-core processor. predictive intelligence with google now complete. introducing droid dna by htc.

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weather making news in parts of the country this christmas. the south is under the threat of severe weather and possible tornadoes as well and a winter storm warning is in effect for much of arkansas, oklahoma, and parts of southern missouri. the storm is already causing problems on the roads. westbound interstate 40 was temporarily shut down for two miles. this is in oklahoma city this morning. the highway patrol says freezing rain is probably to blame for a chain reaction crash involving 20 vehicles. want to get an update on the storm from our meteorologist alexandra steele at the cnn weather center. wow. a lot going on throughout the country. it's one of those days you

should probably stay inside and hunker down. what are we watching? >> what aren't we watching? you're totally right. this is actually just the beginning of what's going to be an incredibly rough 48 hours. so here's the big picture. want to show you the deep south with all of the storms. about 5,000 lightning strikes in the last couple of hours. this is what the radar looks like. here is a little window if you're sitting in your own comfy chair and wondering what it was like in the deep south. you can see from atlanta to oklahoma city. this is oklahoma city. now we'll see a very stormy day there. freezing drizzle. right now it's 24 degrees. a north wind at 23. snow and sleet will turn to all snow after the noon hour. total day time sleet and snow accumulation about 3 to 5 inches. let's take you to atlanta which won't get into the snow but the fog has been really prevalent this morning. you can see kind of cutting off the taller buildings downtown. fog and mist, 53. rain comes in in ernest after

about 3:00 and then tonight is when the severe weather threat finds its way into birmingham and atlanta, georgia. so here is a look. tornado watches posted until 4:00 and 1:00 central time. but, you know, tornado watches we're really going to see them and even tornado warnings. we've had them throughout the morning. they have since expired but it's been this line, kind of tough to see, but this is eastern texas and in toward louisiana. and that's the movement. these storms moving northeast at about 45 to 50 miles per hour. so that is the severe side. and here's where the threat will be. as we head through the afternoon kind of the axis of the severe weather shifts eastward. today houston, new orleans. tonight and through the afternoon atlanta and birmingham. and then for tomorrow, we're still not out of the woods. damaging winds, suzanne, winds today 60 to 80 miles per hour straight line winds not out of the question in the deep south. and there's a whole snow component we could get to, too. a little bit later. >> all right. wow. lots going on there. have to get on the phone and call my relatives and make sure everybody is all right. thank you.

appreciate it. snowy, stormy christmas for a lot of folks and we'll be paying close attention to the weather throughout the day. not only does snow not impede the holidays in sweden. it is actually a vital ingredient. the wheelies these santas are popping wouldn't be half as impressive on dry roads. in thailand christmas arrives on elephants. a procession delivering toys to a school on christmas eve. we're told they even danced to christmas carols. the teacher says it is the best day of the year. in australia the weather is opposite of frightful. check it out. i'm jealous. santa riding on a wave. summer time there. which explains santa's lack of winter flab. look at him. looking pretty good i think. finally yuletide bash in shanghai that i can almost guarantee is not going to become a tradition everywhere. check it out. >> okay.

so one of the dancers says gangnam style ignites your passion in winter. so to all, a good night. quite a number of former world leaders and one current leader are spending this christmas in the hospital. former president george h.w. bush was hoping to be home by now after fighting bronc kitehi for a month. doctors in houston are saying they are being extra cautious in light of the recent setbacks including a slight fever. the 41st president is 88 years old and in stable condition. britain's former iron lady margaret thatcher is recovering from bladder surgery last week. a spokeswoman says that the country's first and so far only female prime minister is doing absolutely fine but likely will not leave the hospital for a few more days. thatcher is 87 years old. she retired from public life after a stroke ten years ago. nelson mandela is looking much better. that is in the words of south africa's current president. he says he is happy to have

visitors on this special day. the 94-year-old south african patriarch was hospitalized with a lung infection but then had surgery for gall stones. he has not appeared in public since 2010. veinsan president hugo chav chavez is said to be on the mend after his latest operation for cancer. the country's vice president said mr. chavez phoned on christmas eve from the hospital bed in cuba. the vice president calls that the best present we could get. that is in his words. well, show me a hero and i will write you a tragedy. that is what novelist f. scott fitzgerald wrote. but then he never met the man that barbara starr did on a recent trip to walter reed army hospital. these guys are heroes but they are hardly tragic. in fact, they are inspiring. take a look. >> pushed forward and opened -- throw my elbow, it unlocks it. throw it back and that's how i maneuver. >> wounded troops in rehab at

the holiday time. all christmas miracles. meet travis mills one of the troops i visited with asking them to send holiday wishes to their buddies. >> hi everybody. i'm staff sergeant travis mills of the 82nd airborne division. i want to wish everybody a merry christmas and happy new year to all of the military forces overseas and home and a special shout out to my guys at the first platoon and four squad. the gun show. miss you guys, love you. have a merry christmas. >> eight months ago he stepped on an i.e.d. >> we thought it was clear but it wasn't. it took all four limbs but didn't take my life. i am thankful for that. >> reporter: it can be a struggle just to walk again. >> with the u.s. navy, want to give a shout out to my friends and family. have a good holiday and stay safe. >> army specialist tyler jeffries also lost his legs. >> just want to give a shout to all my friends and brothers back in afghanistan. happy holidays.

i wouldn't be here without you guys. >> tyler is already getting ready for next christmas. >> i want to start walking as fast as i can because i am in that wheelchair hours every day. i want to be able to get up in my own house and get a cup out of the cupboard. >> happy holidays to my family and i got a bunch of guys in from my unit getting purple hearts today. i say i'm thinking about you guys today. got a special place for you in my heart. >> joshua says it is a good holiday season because of his buddies. >> it is definitely. they're there, alive and breathing. it's good. >> i'm sergeant adam keyes combat engineer 20th engineer brigade airborne out of fort bragg. i give a shout to the guys in the 27th still overseas. >> a triple amputee there is one thing adam didn't lose. his airborne wings tatoo. >> yeah you can take this one off. i didn't even realize. >> the wings are still there. the airborne wings. that's good. >> reporter: that's good.

>> of course. >> reporter: so that is pretty cool the airborne wings. >> yeah. they made it. quadruple amputee eight months ago laying in bed hooked up to hoses. i can walk now. >> oop. going to lean a little. fist form again. bam. jelly fish jelly fish barbara starr, cnn, walter reed national military medical center. that was ups. and who called ups? you did, bob. i just asked a question. it takes a long time to pack a bowling ball. the last guy pitched more ball packers. but you... you consulted ups. you found a better way. that's logistics. that's margin. find out what else ups knows. i'll do that. you're on a roll. that's funny. i wasn't being funny, bob. i know. but since i've been on alli, am i on this one? nope. am i on this one?

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americans love christmas on 34th street, ralphie's neighborhood, but much of the world celebrates christmas, even senegal has santa claus though many people are muslim there. many families take kids to sit on santa's knee and decorate their homes with lights just as we do here. and of course at christmas children the same the world over. in japan you find mirror image child like wonder when the magic moment arrives. suddenly it is your turn to get the gift. you open the present. as you can see that is when the real fun begins. just a simple joy of getting a new toy. look at her face. now to cathedral square in moscow, this is a giant christmas tree in the kremlin. it's the biggest in russia. designers decorated it using a patriotic theme mixing the colors of the russian flag, red, white, and blue.

and finally, syria. in a country now engaged in civil war these peaceful christmas scenes stand in stark contrast. true spirit of christmas, peace, joy, somehow in the middle of the chaos syrians taking a few precious moments to remember. well, we all know the song even if we don't know all the words. 12 days of christmas except of course 5 golden rings we know. this christmas those rings, everything else on the list there, a lot more expensive making the 12 days of christmas a very expensive tradition especially in these struggling times. richard qwest from london is adding up the tab. >> reporter: so you've decided to be very traditional in your christmas presents this year. and you're going to buy the 12 days of christmas. you know, all the items that are in the song well pnc bank has worked out how much it will cost and it is 5% more expensive this

year than last year. and this is why. let's start with the partridge in a pear tree. up 11%. the cost of feed, housing, storage, pear trees. it's all raised the cost. and then you have those five gold rings. you know the price of gold has been very high. as a result, it's up 16.3%. those gold rings are pretty pricey. so on to the living things. the six geese a laying. up nearly 30% because of storage and feed stock. the seven swans aswimming up 11.1%. what about those humans? what about the maids amilking? unchanged. their manual labor. unskilled. the drummers drumming, up 5.5%.

how much does it all cost? if you buy the whole lot, the 12 days of christmas, 25,431. a rise of just about 5%. now, as for the true cost because remember some of them you have to buy again and again. look at that. 107,000. a whopping rise. don't forget if you buy it online on the internet it's even more expensive because of shipping and handling. finally, the cost of buying christmas every year. just look at the way it just keeps getting more and more expensive. over all, when you put the 12 days together, the 12 days of christmas, you can see it's not a cheap business. you keep buying again and again and again. richard quest, cnn, london.

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if you've been to the movies, seen a play, or watched tv in the past 40 years, you probably know and love charles durning, one of ten children born to a poor family in upstate new york. he once said he was born a character actor. he stole scenes in the darkest dramas and slap stick comedieco. on christmas eve at his home in manhattan charles durning passed

away. he was 8 t9 years old. they have also lost the unforgettable jack klugman. our alina cho looks back. >> reporter: for millions of television viewers, jack klugman will always be sports writer oscar madison, the cigar smoking, beer guzzling slob in "the odd couple." >> come on. >> reporter: surprisingly "the odd couple" wasn't his most successful series. at least not at first. it ran for five years on abc and never ranked higher than 36 in the ratings but reruns on local stations and nick at night turned it into a cult classic making it far more popular than klugman's other tv series "quincy."

klugman was the wily medical examiner for seven seasons. it premiered in 1976 as part of nbc's mystery movie. it quickly became a weekly series. when tended, klugman made brief appearances but stayed mainly on his ranch raising horses. he continued to smoke cigarettes and eventually lost a vocal cord to cancer. >> when it first happened, i hid from it because i was sure i was going to get better and i didn't want anyone to know i couldn't talk because then i wouldn't get a job. >> how are you felling? >> reporter: one of his most memorable film roles was in "days of wine and roses." klugman played a counselor or alcoholics anonymous. >> how many strawberries does it take to start an allergy and which one is the one that gives you the hives. >> reporter: he joined another distinguished cast in "12 angry

men." >> in the neighborhood where i live. funny i never thought about it before. >> reporter: he grew up in south philadelphia. he married twice and had two sons. he earned two emmy awards for his role on "the odd couple." it was klugman's long-time friend and co-star tony randall who helped him through his throat cancer treatment and persuaded him to resume his acting in the 1990s. with just one vocal cord doing the work of two, klugman returned for a stage version and a tv version of "the odd couple". >> let me hear you say please. >> reporter: while they continued to reprise their felix and oscar roles on stage and television, klugman admitted they were probably too old for the parts. but he added, who knows them better than us? i am oscar madison. when randall died in 2004, klugman said this to cnn's larry king. >> it's amazing. you know a guy is going to die,

you know it, but you can't prepare for the finality. i don't care if it's 110 and they tell you he's gone. it just knocks me out. you can't accept the finality of it. as i say, a world without tony randall is a world i cannot recognize. >> jack klugman died in his home in north ridge, california, with his wife peggy by his side. he was 90 years old. alina cho, cnn, new york. progressive customers. i plugged in snapshot, and 30 days later, i was saving big on car insurance. with snapshot, i knew what i could save before i switched to progressive. the better i drive, the more i save. i wish our company had something this cool. you're not filming this, are you? aw! camera shy. snapshot from progressive. test-drive snapshot before you switch. visit progressive.com today. omnipotent of opportunity.

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this is a lucky marzipan pig which in germany is a symbol of riches and wealth and strength and fertility, and at the new year you give it to those you love to wish them luck. >> this is a chimney sweeper, a symbol of good luck especially if you touch the button on the chimney sweeper's coat.

>> happy new year from germany. they're not your average christmas carols. the music group celtic woman has been putting an irish twist on traditional songs for eight years. their second album is called "home for christmas." jessica dunn caught up with the women after a performance at the atlanta symphony orchestra. ♪ >> it's very excited to get to sort of feel that power that you have at the start of the show when the music starts and it takes everybody on the journey. ♪ >> i think all over the world i think there is that sort of common thread of christmas is being with your family and celebrating being together. >> i would be happy to sing clibs mass music every month of every year. i love it. it's just fantastic. very special when you get the opportunity to go into studio and record these amazing, amazing sox. >> i feel a bit spoiled actually

getting to every day like since the 28th of november getting to perform christmas music. i don't think i could feel any more festive. ♪ >> it is an honor bringing, you know, our brand of celtic music, which is a mix of contemporary celtic, traditional, and classical to everybody. ♪ >> do you draw inspiration from fiddlers in other genres? >> absolutely. i think -- we all draw inspiration from so many vocalists and musicians, and i, myself, love the cajun music. certainly in the beginning of the reel, there's a very cajun start to it there. >> the irish are